CO: ‘Bomb-Mecca’ Congressman to Retire

The immigration debates aren't nearly settled, but Tom Tancredo has decided to leave Congress before it writes the next major chapter in national policy - presumably after next fall's presidential contest.

Odd? Not really. Tancredo's reasons for stepping down at the end of his current term ring true. He's tired of the incessant travel - the time squandered in airports and on planes - and he wants to kick back a bit.

And after all, as he rightly points out, the House is not exactly bereft these days of colleagues who share some of his passion on the immigration issue. They'll carry on the fight with or without his leadership.

We'll wish Tancredo well when he closes out his congressional career, but we can't pretend we'll be terribly sorry to see him move on. His statements in the past two years - reiterated just three months ago - advocating the razing of Muslim holy sites in retaliation for a terrorist attack involving a nuclear device represent one of the more outrageous positions in living memory offered by an American politician. Tancredo would punish all Muslims for the crimes of a specific Muslim group, in an act of state terrorism perhaps without precedent in modern history. (MORE)

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